The Great Wei Music Bureau

Chapter 129 The fisherman gets a profit

Last time, we talked about Li Yi asking Tuoba Jun to cooperate with him to show the role of the Imperial College, not just a kindergarten or a primary school! The Imperial College is to become the highest institution of learning in Wei, attracting people of insight from all over the world. The implementation of the imperial examination system will undoubtedly shake the status of the clan class. How can these behemoths remain indifferent to this? So how will they fight back? Let's take a look together.

Let's talk about the Imperial College first. With Li Yi's planning, the Imperial College became famous. For a time, people who sent their children to study at the Imperial College lined up in a long line. There were thousands of children who signed up for the enlightenment class. The Imperial College could not handle this scale. As the first chief priest of the Imperial College, Li Yi's role was to deal with various emergencies. He ordered the establishment of an entrance examination, and only children who could pass the entrance examination could enter the school.

On the other hand, those merchants who Li Yi had begged to send their children to the Imperial College were now anxious, and the door of Li's mansion was about to be broken by the crowd. Li Yi had anticipated this, as there were many people who wanted to give gifts and get in through the back door in any era.

At this time, Li Yi's real purpose of visiting them was revealed: Brother, I told you that this is a good place and asked you to send your child here, but you refused. I begged you to send your child here, but you still refused. Oh! Forget it, we are not destined to be together. But now you want me to help you send your child here? Sorry, our fate has ended! If you want to come in, you can go through the formal procedures and take the exam! If your child is good enough, I will accept him, but if he fails the exam, then come back next year, or definitely next time!

The same situation existed not only in the introductory classes but also in the recruitment of students for supervision. Li Yi used professional and subject examinations for selection, but he did not expect that some people actually used his student selection examination as a rehearsal for the imperial examination. All the young talents in the capital came to sign up for the examination, and the number of applicants reached more than 1,400.

Li Yi had no choice but to find Minister Kong and use this exam as a rehearsal for the future joint examination, and let all the officials of the Ministry of Rites participate. So on the sixth day of March, the Imperial College set the questions and the Ministry of Rites hosted the Imperial College student selection examination. It lasted for three days. After the exam, the officials of the Ministry of Rites graded the papers. Li Yi copied all the methods of the college entrance examination. Candidates took the exam anonymously, and examiners were not allowed to contact the outside world during the grading period. They graded papers randomly and exchanged excellent papers for review.

Shangshu Kong praised Li Yi's meticulous arrangements. Under the joint supervision of Shangshu Kong and Li Yi, everything went on in an orderly manner. The results were announced on the tenth day of March. In the end, the Imperial College only admitted more than fifty people. The reason for such strictness was to prepare for the subsequent formal imperial examinations. Many of the more than fifty admitted students were students with partiality for their subjects, because Li Yi knew that if they took the imperial examinations, they might find it difficult to pass in their lifetime.

As for those very outstanding candidates, Li Yi asked the professors and supervisors of the Imperial College to talk to them in detail, explaining that the reason for not admitting them was not because they were not good enough, but because they were very good and should take the imperial examination instead of waiting for opportunities in the Imperial College. He advised them to prepare well and take the initiative to strive for a bigger stage.

Of course, if students did not want to take the imperial examination, or failed the examination, the Imperial College would welcome them at any time. This practice made these students very happy because they had the right to choose. In this way, the Imperial College recruited a total of ten introductory classes, with 25 students in each class; eight Tongsheng classes, with 20 students in each class; and three Jiansheng classes, with 20 students in each class. These more than 500 students became the first batch of students in the Imperial College.

The Imperial College was gradually getting back on track, which made those Confucian and Taoist factions that had not contributed anything sit still. They couldn't just watch Li Yi pull all the students of Wei into his faction! You know, everything in the Imperial College was decided by Li Yi. As long as he wanted, he could develop these students into disciples of the Fa Sect at any time. Now they were not very prominent, but Li Yi was now a favorite of the emperor. Although his official position was not high, once he gained power in the future and recommended his disciples to the court, the Fa Sect would inevitably become the most powerful faction among the Confucian and Taoist factions!

Of course they had this foresight, so they all came to Li Yi to get a share of the pie. Li Yi naturally understood their intentions. After some bargaining, these Confucian and Taoist factions wanted to send elite talents to work in the Imperial College as supervisors, and the condition was that they were allowed to recruit their own disciples in the Imperial College. Li Yi did not have any aversion to this group of people's behavior, but Kong Shangshu was very dissatisfied with it, and he drank with Tao Zhongwen and Lu Shu and scolded them.

In fact, Li Yi had no intention of developing his own sect. Everything was left to nature because he had not found the right person. If he wanted to accept a disciple, he had to find a Confucian scholar who believed in Buddhism, otherwise he would not be able to pass on his experience to him. But before that, Confucianism and Buddhism were incompatible, so there was no such person at all.

In other words, Lin Fan's dialectic hall recruited people, that was all due to his ability, and had little to do with Li Yi. At most, Li Yi proposed a theoretical basis for the dialectic hall. Moreover, Li Yi had no intention of forming a clique, and the reason he founded a sect was for his promotion to a great scholar. Li Yi was now far from being promoted to a great scholar, but his theories had not yet been accepted by the world. Once people accepted his theories and books, he would have the opportunity to break through.

At this point, we have to talk about Li Yi's current cultivation. He has reached the fifth level of Confucianism and has reached the state of mind. He is only one step away from being promoted to a great Confucian scholar, but this step is not easy to take. I don't know what level or state is in Buddhism, it's a question mark. Logically, Li Yi should be in the sixth level of the Buddhist Venerable Realm, but the Buddhist monks' cultivation is quite special. Once they have learned martial arts, they will become the eighth level of Buddhist monks. After being promoted, they will be in the sixth level of the Venerable Realm, and then promoted again to the third level of the Vajra Realm.

Therefore, the combat power of the six-grade Venerable Realm of Buddhism is very different. According to the distribution of combat power, it is equivalent to the sixth to fourth grades of martial arts. Li Yi is the most special one in this Venerable Realm. Why? Because his skills are different from those of other monks. Other monks practice Vajra Magic, or other skills evolved from Vajra Magic, but Li Yi practices the Acala Dharma Image, which is one level higher than the Vajra Magic. Vajra Magic is just a method of the Acala Dharma Image.

After all, it was Bodhisattva Guangsheng who personally taught him the skills, and he also received gifts from Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, so Li Yi's Buddhist practice is very vague. His strength is definitely stronger than Jiyun, who has not yet achieved Vajra, but he is still a half-baked one, because he has not undergone systematic practice and does not know any moves. He cannot bring into play the true power of the Acalanatha Dharmakaya at all. So let's temporarily classify Li Yi's Buddhist practice as the fifth-grade half-meat method!

(If you are not good at magic, you are just meat! That is why it is called meat magic. If Li Yi is promoted to a great scholar and can use the spell at will, then magic will become his strong point and he can be called a battle magician. However, he is still far from that at this stage.)

After saying this, it is time to talk about the clan's reaction to the imperial examination system and Li Yi. The Imperial College is now the hottest and most popular place in the capital, and the clan's reaction to the imperial examination system is also very clear. Isn't it just that there are dozens of people who can pass the exam every year! Compared with such a big country, these dozens of people are not worth mentioning at all. Even if these dozens of people are placed in important positions, we can slowly polish and digest them, and we can win over those who can be won over, and suppress those who can be suppressed. If it really doesn't work, we can kill them, and don't take it to heart.

But the Imperial College is different. It can recruit students on its own, and students are also a reserve of talents. If the Imperial College is allowed to develop recklessly, it will be a real threat to their official career. All clans are not just for free. The reason why they can become clans is at least three generations of management, and large clans like the Yuwen family and the Gongsun family have been passed down for more than five generations.

The current situation is also very clear to everyone. The imperial examination is to give hope to the scholars in the world, so that they can find a way to promotion and immerse themselves in books. The real killer of Tuoba Jun and Li Yi is the Imperial College, the first institution of learning in Wei, the cultural heritage and the talent selection pool of the emperor! So the game in the court began. First, the Minister of Personnel came forward and said that since the students of the Imperial College can be selected as candidates for officials, the Ministry of Personnel should have jurisdiction and supervision over the Imperial College.

Of course, Minister Kong refused to do so. This was the child that the Ministry of Rites had raised. Now that my child has become successful, you come and snatch him away. I definitely cannot agree to that! So the two ministers started arguing. Prime Minister Gongsun Yi stepped in to mediate and offered a solution: the Imperial College would still be under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Rites, but the Ministry of Personnel would have the right to supervise and assess.

Kong Xiu is not a fool, how could he not know the tricks played by these two, one playing the good cop and the other playing the bad cop? Ah! Although Kong Xiu is not a descendant of the saint, he is also a distant relative. He stands on the highest point of morality and refutes the two in the name of the saint, etiquette, law, and morality!

Of course, the struggle in the court is not over with just words, there are many conspiracies and tricks! The inspector quickly jumped out and said that Li Yi used the wrong people. Myolie Wu was a singer but she was an assistant teacher in the Imperial College. It was ridiculous. A singer was teaching students in the Imperial College. Isn't this nonsense? The most ruthless thing about this move was that it insinuated Shiyu, Bailing and Zhao Hanfeng.

Then another censor stood up and said that the Imperial College had become a one-man show for Li Yi, and that it was against the rules to let Li Yi's family take care of everything! These two things could be said to have grasped the key points. Li Yi was criticized and punished one after another. Things like recognizing people as relatives and forming cliques for personal gain began to spread again. Even Hu Dong's ability to enter the Imperial College was accused of Li Yi's selfishness. At one time, there were more than fifty memorials impeaching Li Yi.

So how did Li Yi fight back? No, Li Yi did not respond to all the accusations and insults. However, Bailing and Hanfeng were very anxious. They kept asking Shiyu if her husband was okay. Shiyu just comforted them that everything was fine.

Until one day, the emperor ordered Li Yi to be suspended from his post and placed under investigation at home. This made the two of them furious. Not only them, but also the Imperial College was in an uproar. Both teachers and students were indignant and clamored to go to the gate of the palace to petition. It was Li Yi who calmed the matter down and told them to wait patiently. Justice is in the hearts of the people, and everything will be settled.

Are there no righteous people who speak up for Li Yi? Yes, of course there are. This time, various Confucian and Taoist factions have voiced their support for Li Yi. Why? Because these righteous people are vested interests. Li Yi has set up the pot and put the rice in. It is almost time to eat. They all came to the pot with their bowls. Now someone wants to take the pot away. What can they do?

The court was divided into two factions. The clan group demanded that Li Yi be dismissed and replaced by one of their people, while the Confucian and Taoist side strongly opposed it. Even if a replacement was required, the Imperial College had to continue to be governed by the Ministry of Rites, and the clan members would never be allowed to interfere. The two sides quarreled fiercely.

In this situation, anyone with a discerning eye must have seen the clues. Who can benefit from the quarrel between the snipe and the clam? Of course, the fisherman! As the referee, Tuoba Jun naturally transformed himself into the most fair and just judge, and singled out the Imperial College and placed it under the direct jurisdiction of the Secretariat, not under the Ministry of Rites, and the Ministry of Personnel, and as for the position of the Grand Priest, since so many people impeached Li Yi, it would be inappropriate for him to continue to serve, so Fang Zhuo smoothly took over Li Yi's job and became the Grand Priest of the Imperial College.

At this time, everyone suddenly realized that Tao Zhongwen, the old silver coin, had anticipated all this and had placed Fang Zhuo in the most critical position. The Confucianism's trickery was well-deserved. Although Li Yi was relieved of his position as the chief priest of the Imperial Academy, he was still the head of the Ministry of Rites and Music, and everything remained the same! Tuoba Jun, Tao Zhongwen, and Li Yi joined forces to fool this group of people!

Their goals were all achieved. The imperial examination system was implemented, the Imperial College was established, and Tuoba Jun had his own talent selection pool, which greatly reduced his reliance on the clans. These clans began to discuss countermeasures to prepare for Tuoba Jun's future moves. Li Yi returned from the position of the chief priest to the position of the Music Bureau Commander. Not only did he not feel lost, but he enjoyed it. Shiyu, Bailing, and Hanfeng still had their own jobs in the Imperial College. His goal was also achieved, keeping the three ladies busy!

Fang Zhuo and Li Yi are old acquaintances, so they will naturally take care of their younger siblings. There is no need to mention the relationship between Tao Zhongwen and Li Yi. Shiyu and the other two will also be very attentive in taking care of the assets built by their husbands. Finally, Li Yi has become the most idle person in the Li Mansion.

The Confucian and Taoist factions realized that they had been fooled, but they did not react much, because the Imperial College was still controlled by Confucian and Taoist people, and Guidao was also a Confucian faction, right? So people who wanted to please Fang Zhuo and Tao Zhongwen began to visit them, and Junzi Pavilion and the Imperial College became the gathering places for Confucianism and Taoism, and there were always various poetry meetings, debates and seminars held in these two places.

Fang Zhuo was driven out of the capital by the Confucian and Taoist factions. Of course, he hated these shameless guys, but as a man of the cunning way, he naturally had his own way. He also knew that this revenge was not unrequited, but the time had not come yet. Teacher Tao Zhongwen might plot against these corrupt scholars at any time. So Fang Zhuo put on a broad-minded attitude and got along well with this group of people. They became close friends and called each other brothers.

Focusing on the court, the attitudes of the major clans towards the imperial examination system and the Imperial College have been made clear. They cannot oppose it openly, but they want to stab it in the back. Their hands are slowly reaching out for these two pieces of cake. Li Yi was well prepared for this. He suggested to the emperor that all the examiners and examiners of the provincial, prefectural and metropolitan examinations should be gathered together in advance, and all their contacts with the outside world should be cut off. Their safety should be protected by the army, and the examination halls should also be managed by the army.

This method caused unrest among the clan classes, because the clans with military power could take the opportunity to stir up some trouble, and Li Yi's real purpose was to lure them out and then kill them as a warning to the rest. Tao Zhongwen mobilized the Xuan Jing Division to begin investigating the movements of the major clans and collecting evidence and intelligence, and soon the "one" was found.

Wang of Jizhou tried to bribe the examiner to steal the test questions and bribe the examiner to provide convenience for his family members and disciples, but was reported and exposed with irrefutable evidence. Tuoba Jun was furious and confiscated Wang's property. All the men of Wang's family were exiled to the northern border and were not allowed to return home without amnesty. The women were taken to the Jiaofang Division.

The Wang family of Yizhou was just one of the major families involved in the action, but it was carefully selected by Tuoba Jun and Tao Zhongwen to serve as an example to others. The Wang family was neither big nor small, and had some prestige in the local area, but the family's influence was limited to Jizhou, which could be said to be the most suitable whetstone.

Tuoba Jun took the opportunity to establish his authority and warned the major clans that if similar situations occur again, they will not show mercy! As soon as this happened, the major clans restrained themselves and maintained a wait-and-see attitude, watching how the four major families would react. As for the four major families, Tuoba Jun had already done a good job of appeasing them. Empress Dowager Xiao had means, Tuoba Jun also had actions, and even Li Yi went to find the Dugulong brothers and Nangong brothers and sisters in private.

For Wei, the four major families cannot be in chaos, at least not before the pillars are replaced! Both Dugu and Nangong families have military power. Li Yi expressed that the imperial examination system is aimed at the civil service group with the words of military merit supremacy, and has no impact on the army, let alone Dugu and Nangong. In addition, Tuoba Jun specially arranged for the Zhenbei Army and Dingnan Army to participate in the special examination to show his trust and reliance on the two major families.

On the other hand, the Yuwen and Gongsun families did feel threatened. Empress Dowager Xiao found the leaders of the two families, appealed to their emotions and reason, and used the strategy of sticks and sweet dates to persuade the two families not to cause trouble and not to delay His Majesty's plan.

In the court, Tuoba Jun praised Yuwen Zheng for his recent outstanding contributions to the Imperial College, which was actually just raising money. He also issued an edict on the spot to restore the salary that had been suspended due to the treason of Yuwen Ye and Yuwen Tian, ​​father and son. He also arranged a marriage for Yuwen Zheng's second daughter, Yuwen Yuan, to Wang Zhong, the son of Wang Meng, the commander of the imperial guards of Shangjing City. Not only did he give her generous gifts, but he also granted her a phoenix chariot for her marriage. This was a supreme honor.

As for the Gongsun family, although the eldest son of Gongsun Yi had died, the official positions or salaries of other descendants of the Gongsun family were quietly promoted. As the prime minister, Gongsun Yi knew the reason. From then on, the four major families were stabilized and they did not interfere in the affairs of the Imperial College and the special examination. Even if some families had ideas, Tuoba Jun could scare them away by raising the stick high.

Therefore, being a wise ruler is very tiring. Not only does one need to have a sense of the overall situation, but one also needs to be tactful and know how to compromise. Otherwise, one's ideals and ambitions will never be realized. Don't think that being an emperor means you have the final say and can do whatever you want. If you want to be a despotic ruler, you can do so. If you don't want to, then just grind yourself down slowly!